Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Ohio

In Ohio, Ohio Revised Code Section 5321.15 prohibits a landlord from throwing out a tenant's items without going through the statutory eviction process. The only defense to a "self help" eviction claim would be to argue to the court that the tenant abandoned the premises and the items. However, you leave yourself exposed if the judge does not see it your way and the tenant makes up a bunch of nonsense about how valuable the property was that he had in the apartment.

If you can show the judge that the tenant gave you the keys, or if the tenant made a statement to you in writing (even a text or an email will do) that he was out and not coming back, then you should be okay. But if there is any doubt in y our mind about your ability to win in court on the issue of abandonment, you should do an eviction and get rid of the stuff through the court process. Evictions are very common legal proceedings and not difficult nor very expensive to maintain.